Vancouver Canadians: Decade In Review
Ten years after the first pitch at 7:17pm on June 25th, 2000 vs. Spokane out at Nat Bailey Stadium, we take a look back to reflect on the great players and moments that have made more than one million fans come out and enjoy Canadians baseball since we first raised the curtain on C's baseball back at the turn of the millenium.
Here is a year-by-year account of the Vancouver Canadians Baseball Club dating back to the team's arrival in 2000.
2000 RECAP:
"KEEPING PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL IN VANCOUVER"
Few things are more bittersweet that watching a hometown team relocate. It's even worse when the team that you have cheered on for years wins a championship and doesn't even come back for a celebration.
After the 1999 Pacific Coast League season - a year in which the Vancouver Canadians won their third championship in their 21-year history - the C's left town for Sacramento, CA.
The new home of the Canadians, soon to become the Sacramento Rivercats, had everything that Vancouver did not at the time: a stable ownership group, a state-of-the-art ballpark, and a much closer geographic locale to the parent Oakland A's. In the team's wake, it looked as though Nat Bailey's doors would be nailed shut with professional baseball just a memory.
But just days after the Triple-A Canadians picked up and left town, a flicker of hope became a beacon of light as former C's owner, Fred Herrmann, decided to bring his short-season franchise from Medford, Oregon, up to Vancouver in time for the 2000 Northwest League season.
The team, known as the Timberjacks in Southern Oregon, took on the name Canadians as Herrmann saw very quickly upon their arrival that Vancouver still very much loved baseball and their "C's".
Herrmann may have felt like he hit the jackpot being able to bring his club into such a large market, but it took a bit for fans locally to warm up to what many assumed as a 'lesser' quality of baseball.
Triple-A baseball largely had players on the brink of the majors, or players who had enjoyed a number of years in the sun and were now on the downside of their wonderful careers. Class-A Short-Season was a new concept for some, but it didn't take long for fans of the Canadians to make the adjustment.
In 2000, the Oakland A's, who ironically remained as the Canadians' parent club, drafted shortstop Freddie Bynum with their first selection in the annual selection process. Bynum was a quiet, but slick infielder who was lightning quick on the base paths and remains near the top of the C's single-season stolen base list with 22. Bynum was a second rounder, and found himself surrounded by a number of fans all curious to see what this 'new' type of baseball player could accomplish.
Bynum, along with players Joe Cirone, Marc Gwyn, Jorge Soto and Cade Sanchez were managed by C's skipper Dave Joppie. Joppie had briefly coached in the A's system, and had the helpful eyes of pitching coach Jim Coffman and hitting coach Billy Owens.
Baseball had survived one of its strongest challenges in Vancouver by simply keeping the game alive without missing a season.
2001 RECAP:
"STRUGGLING SOPHOMORES"
The Vancouver Canadians now had a year under their belt at the Short-Season level and were rewarded for all of the efforts in 2000 with a special group in 2001.
Led by Victoria's RHP Rich Harden, the Canadians found themselves with a wealth of pitching talent that included future big leaguers RHP John Rheinecker, LHP Neal Cotts, RHP Mike Wood, RHP Chris Mabeus and RHP Jeremy Bonderman. The offense was not shabby either with 1B Dan Johnson and OF Matt Allegra, both hitting 11 home runs over the 76 game schedule, and NCAA Johnny Bench Award Winner C Casey Myers behind the plate.
The Canadians were led by first-year skipper, Webster Garrison, who had been with the Oakland A's organization since 2001; mainly as a manager with AA Midland. In 2001, Garrison had Jim Coffman as his pitching coach and Billy Owens as his hitting coach. Billy has probably made the greatest strides from that trio as he is now Oakland's Director of Player Personnel.
This was in all instances, a team for the future.
The C's in 2001 also had plenty of personality, as guys like RHP JR Crider out of Lewis Clark State (Idaho) showed up for the C's mini-camp with long mutten-chop sideburns and big hoop necklaces. RHP Edwin Minaya had an uncanny resemblance to Pedro Martinez and threw as hard as the Major League Baseball star, giving Edwin the nickname 'Baby Pedro'.
The 2001 Canadians, for all of their talent, ended up underachieving for the most part sporting a 37-39 record. Vancouver finished 13 games back of division champion Salem-Keizer. As a team, the C's struggled to put that 'big' inning together and the pitching never seemed to find the consistency as Webster's boys had a ton of velocity, but seldom matched it with control.
There were flashes of brilliance as Rich Harden took a no-hitter into the 8th inning on an overcast Tuesday on September 4th, 2001, but left the game having reached his pitch count (95). Harden in his final start ended the season with 100 strikeouts, a Vancouver Canadians record that remains intact heading into the 2010 season.
Casey Myers was named the Canadians MVP (.278/7/35) and was consistent behind the plate defensively. Dan Johnson was voted the 'Player to Watch' after hitting (.284/11/41). Johnson later became a solid contributor to the Oakland A's offense arriving with the Canadians parent club in 2005.
2002 RECAP:
"MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL; MAJOR LEAGUE PLAYERS"
If anyone ever doubted whether or not the Oakland A's provide talent to the hometown Canadians, the 2002 season might be a good reminder that talent can be found daily out at Nat Bailey Stadium.
The C's opening day roster included OF Nick Swisher, RHP Joe Blanton and OF Mark Teahen. A wonderful team that got off to an impressive start in 2002, winning four of their first five games to kick off the campaign.
In Spokane, WA, Nick Swisher hit his first home run as a pro; Mark Teahen drove in a game winning RBI; and big Joe Blanton showed why he'd eventually become a big leaguer with the A's.
OF Nelson Cruz was another player that found his way to the Major Leagues, but was quiet at 'The Nat' until Cruz exploded in late July going 12-for-27 over a six-game stretch that saw the speedy outfielder swipe six bases during the run. Cruz debuted in the Major Leagues in 2005 with the Milwaukee Brewers after the A's traded him, along with Justin Lehr, for Keith Ginter.
The Canadians once again had local talent as C David Harriman from Richmond, BC, took to the field for the team sharing duties along with C John Suomi. Suomi has since played in the Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Washington organizations. Harriman played 32 games in his first season in Vancouver hitting (.234/1/8).
The Canadians were skipped by Canadian-born Manager, Orv Franchuk, who had Gord Gerlach, another Canadian-born, as his hitting coach and Mike Mauer as the club's pitching coach. The C's finished 37-39 for the second straight season, finishing seven games back of Everett in the NWL's Southern Division.
2003 RECAP:
"A SOMBER FINISH TO A DECENT SEASON UNDER THE SUN"
The 2003 Canadians looked to have finally turned the corner on the Vancouver sporting scene as just four seasons after AAA baseball left the city with no real farewell, fans came back to 'The Nat' for the first time in a long while.
More than 137,000 fans came through the gates, putting the Canadians on average to hit the same average that the Triple-A Canadians drummed up over their longer schedule. A fun and exciting product had been found on the diamond - and in 2003, the C's would need all the help they could get.
The Canadians were led into the 2003 season by Dennis Rodgers, the fourth Canadians Manager in as many seasons (Dave Joppie, Webster Garrison & Orv Franchuk), along with Ed Vosberg (Pitching Coach) and Juan Dilone (Hitting Coach).
Vosberg had an interesting resume that included being the only player ever to participate in a Little League World Series, a College World Series and a Major League World Series ('97 Florida).
The C's staff was fully armed and ready; the only problem - the talent pool in 2003 ran a little dry.
The C's led by Eddie Kim and Omar Quintanilla got off to a shaky start, even with the addition of the multi-tooled Andre Ethier. It seemed when the pitching was on, the hitters ran dry, and vice versa for the first half of the season.
One of the bright spots early on was the bat of Eddie Cornejo, who put together a 10-game hitting streak (June 30-July 10), but even Cornejo's hitting couldn't stop the C's from stumbling out of the gate to a 7-12 record, and that was the C's season.
Vancouver would win in Yakima 15-1 on Tuesday, and lose 6-0 to those same Bears on Wednesday.
The Canadians finished the season 35-41, eight games back of Salem-Keizer, third in the Western division. Some of the memories from 2003 include Andre Ethier's inside-the-park home run (July 8), Omar Quintanilla's rapid improvement (Colorado Springs AAA 2007), and having Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn come out to 'The Nat' for a few sunny afternoons to get workouts with the team.
Russell's son, Wyatt, had moved up to Vancouver to play junior hockey with the Burnaby Express. Kurt Russell took BP and went through the drills much as he did when he played amateur baseball south of the border. No contract was offered.
A sad note to finish off the 2003 recap as on November 27th, 2003, well after the final pitch had been thrown, former Canadians pitcher Mike Frick died at the age of 23.
Frick had just finished his third professional season within the A's organization when he was involved in a single vehicle accident that claimed his life. Frick went 7-2 for the C's back in 2001 and was a monster out of the bullpen for the Canadians, securing many close victories.
Frick was an All-Star in the 2002 California League and was quickly promoted to Midland in 2003. Mike will be remembered around Nat Bailey Stadium for his huge smile and unbelievably charming personality.
2004 RECAP:
"A TEAM TO BE RECKONED WITH"
The Vancouver Canadians turned the page in 2004, and took to the field rejuvenated and full of top draft picks, hoping to impress the Oakland A's brass.
Dennis Rodgers was the only coaching carry-over as he returned for his second consecutive stint with the C's. Joining Rodgers was hitting coach Todd Steverson who since 2004 has blossomed into one of the A's most successful and acclaimed on-field staff members, and Craig Lefferts arrived as the C's pitching coach.
Lefferts was best known for his Game Two victory in the 1984 World Series, picking up the only win of the World Series for the Padres who were ousted by the World Champion Tigers.
A potent staff meant, with the right combination of on-field talent, the C's could be a team to be reckoned with. Players OF Javier Herrera, C Landon Powell, OF Richie Robnett, P Dallas Braden, C Kurt Suzuki and OF Gregorio Petit were the nucleus of the Canadians in 2004 and helped the C's move towards their first NWL Western Division Championship.
It wasn't a "cake walk" by any means as the C's battled the Everett Aquasox tooth and nail throughout the 2004 season.
The C's could never shake the Sox during the summer, but on nights like August 16th where the C's pounded the Eugene Emeralds 12-1, with Herrera going 3-for-4 with a home run, Robnett adding three RBI and P Clay Tichota coming in to improve his record to 3-0, it was easy to see that Dennis Rodgers and his staff had the boys firing on all cylinders.
The Canadians would take the Northwest League West Division Championship on the final day of the regular season (September 5) with Vancouver needing 11 innings to beat Eugene 6-4 for their 42nd win of the season. The win gave the Canadians a shot at the powerhouse Boise Hawks, who had put together a season equal to Vancouver's 42-36 record.
Just before the C's opened the Championship series against Boise, OF Javier Herrera had been named the NWL Most Valuable Player after putting up remarkable numbers (.331/12/47). Herrera and the Canadians made the 12-hour bus ride down to Boise, ID, to play the Hawks and it was lopsided right from the start. Boise punished Vancouver pitching on the opening night (September 6) winning 7-4, and again in Game Two (September 7) 9-7.
A travel day would give Vancouver a chance to re-energize, but in Game Three (September 9) the Canadians were swept away in the first crack at the NWL Championship losing 5-3. Vancouver had been swept three games to none by the Boise Hawks, ending an otherwise impressive season.
More than 140,000 fans enjoyed C's baseball in the summer of 2004.
2005 RECAP:
"CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR
The Vancouver Canadians were flying high heading into the 2005 season. Fresh off of their first Divisional Championship, the C's had plenty to look forward to as the Manager Juan Navarette took over for the 2005 campaign; helped by returning Pitching Coach Craig Lefferts and first year Hitting Coach Jeremy Schied - who had played with the short-season Canadians back in 2000.
Schied had since retired and had been scouting regionally when the call came to help with Vancouver.
The C's also got a surprise when Park Jung-Tae arrived in Vancouver as a guest instructor for the season. Park was a five-time all-star and two-time MVP of the Korean Professional League.
Park came to Vancouver to help coach the A's organization for free after Korean Baseball turned their backs on him for supporting the player's union.
2005 brought players Jeff Baisley, Haas Pratt and Chad Boyd together with first rounders Travis Buck, along with Chalon Tietje (touch-E) and Mike Madsen, who would turn out to be a winning combination.
The C's got out of the gate quickly in the Western Division, after taking eight of their first ten to open the 2005 season. Chad Boyd got off to a great start offensively and maintained his pace throughout the season finishing (.283/1/27), while Haas Pratt and Jeff Baisley chipped in and often six home runs a piece on the season.
As the Canadians continued their climb towards a second straight Western Division Championship, it was clear this team was made on their pitching staff. Not one offensive player had overwhelming numbers the way Javier Herrera had the year before (.331/12/47), but the 2005 pitching staff, under the tutledge of Craig Lefferts, had NWL hitters off balance the whole season.
In 15 games, and with 80 innings under his belt, P Mike Madsen finished with an ERA of 1.69 with 68 strikeouts against 14 walks. Madsen was joined by P Jeff Gray who had a sparkling 2.51 ERA in 11 starts with 24 strikeouts and just five walks. This was the recipe for success for the C's in 2005 - and it helped them to a 46-30 record, good enough to hold off a late-season surge by Salem-Keizer winning the Western Division for the second straight season.
Salem-Keizer finished one game back, Everett finished four off the pace.
The Championship series ended up being a tale of two teams as the C's were off to Spokane to battle the Eastern Division Champions who finished the season two games below .500 at 37-39. The Canadians wasted little time and won game one (September 8) 7-1 over the Indians. Chad Boyd went 3-for-5 in the game one win; the C's first playoff victory in short-season history.
Game two (September 9) saw Spokane fight back beating Jeff Gray up in a 6-1 victory, tying the series at one game a piece.
Game three (September 10) was back in Vancouver and behind Mike Madsen, the Canadians All -Star pitcher, Vancouver won 6-0 to move them within one game of the first NWL Championship.
Game four (September 11) the Indians kept the champagne on beating Vancouver at Nat Bailey Stadium 2-0 to set up a one game winner takes all.
Game five was a wash as Spokane prevented Vancouver from winning the NWL Championship with an 8-3 thumping of the C's.
2006 RECAP:
"A SEASON OF MODEST NUMBERS"
Coming off a back-to-back NWL Western Division Championships, the 2006 Canadians had some big shoes to fill as the expectation level for success in Vancouver was high.
A new Manager, Rick Magnante, along with a new Hitting Coach, Benny Winslow, joined now veteran Pitching Coach Craig Lefferts in Vancouver for the 2006 season. Magnante had just arrived in Vancouver shortly after managing the South American entry at the inaugural World Baseball Classic.
OF Matt Sulentic, C Jake Smith and OF Ramiro Mendez gave the C's a little 'pop' offensively with Sulentic eventually putting up impressive numbers for an 18-year-old (.354/2/22) hitting safely in 35 of the 38 games he played in.
The pitching had a tough act to follow in 2006 after the 2005 Canadians led the NWL in team ERA. This year's edition of the C's finished with more modest numbers, but did get an eight (8) win season out of Scott Deal (8-4).
The Canadians got out of the gate well, putting together a 7-3 record in their first 10 games. But this season, the Canadians would almost have to play perfect baseball to catch the class of the NWL in 2006 - the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes. Salem-Keizer and Vancouver met just over three weeks into the season with Vancouver sporting a 14-7 record.
Salem-Keizer was terrific on July 8th, sending a message to the Canadians by taking tow of three, including a 9-0 pasting of the C's (July 9) that sent the two teams in different directions. After that series, Vancouver played sub .500 baseball the rest of the season and the Volcanoes went on to post one of the greatest Short-Season records in minor league baseball history finishing at 55-21 (.724).
The Canadians finished 16 games back of the Volcanoes after coming into the July series right with the Volcanoes atop the NWL Western Division standings.
Vancouver's pitching, despite the second half of the season, still finished third in the NWL in team ERA. Unfortunately for Vancouver, the playoff push was long gone to see what could have been had these guys been pushed.
Offensively, the C's got decent years out of INF Mike Affronti and Wilbur Perez, who ended up stealing 10 bases on the season. Vancouver finished the 2006 season with a record of 37-39.
2007 RECAP:
"NEW OWNERSHIP. NEW OUTLOOK."
The Vancouver Canadians in 2007 were an organization in transition, both on and off the field.
The Canadians on the daimond started the 2007 season with a record 13 Central American players: RHP Leonardo Espinal, Opening Day starter RHP Jose Guzman, and RHP Pascual Manzueta to name a handful. The C's offense were slow out of the gate, but had players 1B Dan Hamblin and OF JD Pruitt picking up the early season slack.
Despite the C's lack of early season offense, the team managed to get off to a 4-1 start to the season, giving local fans hope that this club could bounce back from a mediocre 2006 and deliver the team's third Western Division pennant in four seasons.
Additions like 1B Sean Doolittle out of the University of Virginia, and SS John Horton fresh off of two straight NCAA World Series appearances, gave the Canadians an offensive boost through mid-June.
The offensive 'pop' was short-lived though as both Doolittle's and Horton's stay in Vancouver were cut short, as both were called up to Kane County and Stockton respectively.
Without Doolittle and Horton to solidify the middle of the order, the C's and the opposition found holes in their offensive attack, and could not keep up with a Salem-Keizer Volcanoes club (San Francisco) that topped their record-breaking performance from a year earlier, finishing the season with a 57-19 record (55-21 in 2006).
The C's finished a massive 19 ½ games back of the NWL Champion Volcanoes, yet finished the season with the league's second best record at 37-38.
It was the first time in league history that seven teams finished below .500 in the Northwest League.
Some of the brighter moments for the Canadians included OF JD Pruitt breaking a long-standing NWL record for HBPs with 34 (see pages 100-101). The record previously for HBP was 22 set by Richard Ladjevich (1994). 3B Justin Frash stared the season a paltry 0-for-13, but fought through it to finish the season at .244 with 47 hits (11 doubles).
The C's finished the season with a win, ringing in owners Jake Kerr and Jeff Mooney's first campaign in the NWL.
The fan experience was back with numerous stadium upgrades and a renewed commitment to keeping baseball in Vancouver. Kerr and Mooney's efforts were rewarded with the Oakland A's extending the club's Player Development Contract through to the 2010 season.
2008 RECAP:
"STRONG FINISH STILL FALLS SHORT OF SALEM-KEIZER IN FEISTY WEST DIVISION"
The Vancouver Canadians had a complete image overhaul in the months leading up to the 2008 season with a trio of key cosmetic changes including a new logo, uniform and mascot. The Canadians dropped the red, white and blue standard that had seen the Canadians through 30 seasons of baseball out at Nat Bailey Stadium.
2008 saw a new, sleek looking red and white colour scheme with the C's returning to a crisp home white uniform and a new black alternate jersey as well, marking the first time in franchise history that a black jersey had been worn by a Vancouver Canadians club.
On the field, the Canadians returned 12 players from the 2008 squad that finished 37-39, well back of West Division Champion Salem-Keizer. With names like LHP Pedro Figueroa, RHP Carlos Hernandez and LHP Fabian Gomez, fans of the Canadians had a number of familiar faces to cheer for.
After a mediocre 2007 for Hernandez (0-0 11.57), the native of Santa Clara, California, bounced back with one of the most dominant first months in franchise history on the mound. Hernandez went 2-0 with a sparkling 1.82 Earned Run Average along with 38 strikeouts against just seven walks in seven appearances.
Hernandez wasn't alone as far as key performances on the mound, as RHP Ronny Morla and LHP Pedro Figueroa chewed up a combined 144 innings and ended up tied for the Northwest League strikeout lead at season's end with 77 each.
Offensively, the Canadians struggled out of the gate with OF Mitch Levier, INF Ryne Jernigan, INF Dan Wentzell and OF Lorenzo Macias unable to keep their respective averages above .200 through the first three weeks of the season.
Wentzell and Macias were released by the Oakland Athletics outright, Jernigan was demoted to Arizona (R) and Levier was given spot time as the Canadians roster fleshed itself out with names like OF Jeremy Barfield, OF Jareck West and OF David Thomas who took center stage.
Thomas hit .290 with 18 doubles sparking the Canadians offense along with Jeremy Barfield who added 17 doubles while cashing in 41 RBI. Jareck West led the team in triples with four (4).
The Canadians were eliminated from playoff contention with nine games to go in the 2008 season, but instead of folding the tent, the C's finished strong, winning seven of their final 10 games including a three-game sweep of the Eugene Emeralds that essentially cost the San Diego Padres Class-A Short-Season Affiliate a division title.
2009 RECAP:
"THE STARS JUST REFUSED TO ALIGN FOR THE CANADIANS IN '09"
The Vancouver Canadians were led onto the field in 2009 by Manager Rick Magnante, who became the first field boss in more than 100 years to lead a Vancouver-based professionally affiliated baseball team onto the field in four consecutive seasons.
Sporting a record of 110-117 (.486) over his first three campaigns in Vancouver, Magnante was reunited with pitching coach Craig Lefferts, who had missed his previous two assignments to Vancouver due to health concerns.
Joining the staff in 2009 was hitting coach Casey Myers, who played with the Canadians in both 2001 and 2006.
Myers was touted as one of the game's bright young minds and he would be tested early as the Oakland Athletics failed to send a blue chip group to Nat Bailey Stadium out of the gate.
The Canadians offensive attack was led early on by Brigham Young University senior DH Kent Walton, who along with OF/2B Conner Crumbliss helped spark the C's to a handful of early victories with timely hitting.
Walton would go on to collect 80 hits on the season, ranking him 2nd all-time on the Canadians single-season hits list; while Crumbliss, who stood at just 5'8", managed 49 walks over the 2009 season finishing just one bases on balls short of JD Pruitt's 50 amassed in 2007.
Vancouver pitching had its challenges early on as well as the young, inexperienced group struggled to find the consistency needed to string together a handful of victories.
Having said that, one of the Canadians feel-good stories was RHP Chad Lee, who was making what turned out to be a triumphant return from a Tommy John surgery by pitching 11.2 IP of no-hit baseball before the A's quickly advanced him to Kane County (Midwest-A). Lee left two consecutive starts with no-hitters intact, including an appearance where he would hold the Spokane Indians off the base paths for 7.1IP.
RHP Paul Smyth, who was the Canadians latest drafted player (44th round), was one of Minor League Baseball's surprise stories as well as quietly the former Kansas Jayhawk would keep a scoreless streak out of the bullpen that lasted the entire season. Given the moniker 'The Insurance Paul-icy', Smyth would finish the season with 29.1 IP, 0 R, 0 ER, 9 SV, 44 SO, 7 BB.
Smyth was a perfect 9-for-9 in save opportunities once Canadians closer RHP Jose Guzman was promoted. Smyth would get a late season call up to Kane County where in four more regular season appearances he would not give up a run.
The Canadians would finish the 2009 season with a mediocre 36-40 record, well back of eventual Northwest League Champion, Salem-Keizer. But the stories of achievement on an individual basis made for a good, entertaining ball club that helped Rick Magnante to 6th all-time for wins accumulated by a Vancouver Manager.
Rob Fai is broadcaster for the Vancouver Canadians Baseball Club and is entering his 5th season with the organization.